Padang Serai MP N Gobalakrishnan is continuing his tirade against PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim, and this time has challenged him to reopen a Hindu temple in Selangor. The fiery first-term MP issued an ultimatum to Anwar to reopen the Sivan temple on Bukit Gasing, Petaling Jaya, after claiming that Anwar was the one who personally instructed that the temple be closed down.

The ethnic Indian PKR leaders have rallied behind party de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim over allegations of his involvement with the closure of the Sivan temple in Petaling Jaya. Newly-minted party vice-president N Surendran said that the decision to close the temple was made by the Petaling Jaya City Council and Anwar had no involvement whatsoever. “It is ridiculous that a national leader of a party would be involved in a local council decision,” said Surendran during a press conference at the party headquarters today.

He added that the accusers, who include former party supreme council member and Padang Serai MP N Gobalakrishnan, were making “malicious” and “ridiculous” accusations. The Sivan temple situated on top of Bukit Gasing in Petaling Jaya has been the main topic in Gobalakrishnan's recent grouses against the party leadership, even going as far as to saying that Anwar was “anti-Hindu” for allegedly closing the temple.

Temple being renovated, not closed

Former supreme council member S Manikavasagam also rubbished Gobalakrishnan's allegations, adding that he was deeply disappointed with the latter for making unfounded claims. “If Anwar really did close the Sivan temple down, I'll be the first to make noise. You know me, I'm a noisemaker.

“But the person making these allegations should also know the full story behind the temple,” said Manikavasagam, who is also the Kapar MP.

Explaning the situation, Selangor exco in charge of non-Muslim houses of worship Dr Xavier Jayakumar denied that the temple is completely closed off. “Yes, it is closed to the public only because physical construction work is still going on,” said Xavier, who is a former party vice-president.

He explained that renovations on the temple started in 2006, where the temple's board of trustees - which included former MIC president S Samy Vellu's wife, Indrani - had wanted to expand the tiny temple into the largest Sivan temple in the country, that could cater to 100,000 devotees.Exco involved, not Anwar

A stop-work order was issued in 2007 when it was found that the construction works were causing soil erosion in Bukit Gasing. The order was quickly lifted when the temple remedied the hazards. Another stop-work order was issued again in December 2008 when the contractors did not meet the local council's safety requirements for slope development.

Since then, the board of trustees had poured RM1.4 million into fortification work of the slope and soil, lifting the stop-work order just a month after it was issued.

“Since then, construction is still going on in the temple. Of course we have to close it to the public and devotees because it is still not safe. But work is still progressing to this date,” he said.

“And I want to stress that at no time that Anwar is involved in the decision-making of this temple. The meetings has always been between the temple board of trustees, me and the local council,” he said.

Gobalakrishnan had previously zeroed in on Anwar, together with Subang MP and Dr Xavier as being instrumental in “closing” down the temple, before issuing an ultimatum to them to re-open the temple within a week from today.

THE emergence of a so-called third force in the form of the Malaysian Civil Liberties Movement (MCLM) is a big headache for Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders. Many of the people in the movement, and those who support such a movement, are the very ones who would normally support PR. So, if the MCLM were to field candidates in a general election, it’s bound to steal votes away from PR.

If PR wants to have a ghost of a chance to take over Putrajaya, it has to avoid such three-cornered fights at all cost. The MCLM does not want to be a spoiler of course. What it wants is to put forth good candidates for Parliament. And it wants to do this by way of offering its candidates to PR parties.

This doesn’t mean the candidates are keen to join those parties though. This approach is not unprecedented. Perkasa founder Ibrahim Ali (formerly Umno and then independent) ran under the PAS ticket while Wee Choo Keong (Malaysian Democratic Party) and Dr Michael Jeyakumar Devaraj (Parti Sosialis Malaysia) ran under the PKR ticket. Still, it was not a common thing and occurred in only a few instances. MCLM though is said to want to field some 30 candidates. That’s a lot of candidates for the PR parties to absorb.

What PR should do is formalise itself as a proper coalition and allow for direct membership. If Barisan Nasional (BN) can do it, why not PR? But even if this is done, there’s still the problem of allocating constituencies for these candidates. How are they going to find places for 30 of them? For one thing, MCLM must be reasonable and not expect to contest in a seat where PR is the incumbent. If they agree to that though, it almost necessarily means that it’s PKR or PAS that will have to make room for the newcomers because DAP won most of the federal seats it contested in.

PKR, in contrast, fielded candidates in a huge number of seats. It won many contests but it lost many as well. If it wants to make way for MCLM, it can. So can PAS to a certain extent but the kind of candidates MCLM would be putting up are not likely to be the ones that will naturally fit into a PAS constituency. The onus then is really for PKR to give way if it wants to avoid three-cornered fights.

Which constituency then should the MCLM go after? As a start it should target all the seats occupied by party-hoppers, the ones who have left their party to become BN-friendly independents.If MCLM wants to make a positive difference, those are the seats they should focus on. Then, MCLM should try to win the seats that PR failed to do so the last time around. If it’s true that they have such superior candidates, they should have a fighting chance.

And what happens if PR, and PKR in particular, does not accommodate MCLM’s request? Will MCLM’s leaders go the way of Zaid Ibrahim and spew bitter criticism at PR?Will it also field independent candidates in certain seats and force three cornered-fights around the country? If it does, that would be the biggest mistake MCLM ever makes for it will then lose all credibility. People who would normally support it will suddenly say, "These guys are so full of themselves."

The key is compromise. Look at how Perkasa, many of whose members are supposedly from Umno, is behaving rationally and deciding not to campaign in Tenang so as to not jeopardise BN’s chances. Tenang has a considerable non-Malay population. If Perkasa can exercise restraint in an effort to further its agenda, should MCLM exhibit at least as much rationality and restraint to achieve its agenda too? -from Oon Time byOon Yeoh

29 December 2010

The Federal government is a "coward" for hiding behind the palace in the appointment of the new Selangor state secretary, the Seri Setia assemblyperson Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad says.The appointment of former Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) director Mohd Khusrin Munawi is bound to deepen the rift between the state and federal governments, Nik Nazmi said, calling the move "sabotage".

"It is only common sense and basic professionalism to appoint someone who can work with the government of the day. But here, the federal government has blatantly taken on someone with a clear record of going against the state government. "This is sabotage," said Nik Nazmi, who was a former political secretary to Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim.

"(Prime Minister) Najib (Abdul Razak) has only two objectives - winning the next general election and taking back Selangor because that is where the money is. In other words, I'd call him bacul (coward)," he said when contacted. With Khusrin's appointment to take effect on Jan 1, many in the Selangor government are calling it a clearcut effort to cripple the Pakatan Rakyat administration.

Khalid yet to meet Sultan

While chief secretary to the government Sidek Hassan has insisted that the approval of Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah of Selangor, has been obtained, it is understood that Khalid has been frantically attempting to seek an audience with the Sultan. Khalid traditionally has an audience with the Sultan every Wednesday morning, before holding the state executive council meeting.

However, several news reports have indicated that the Sultan is away on leave and will only be back in Selangor on Jan 3, three days after Khusrin is supposed to start work. Some of the news reports quoted the Sultan's private secretary, Mohamad Munir Bani, as saying that the appointment was final and could not be disputed. Munir also blamed the state government for being late in sending in its recommendations for the post.

It is understood that Khalid had sent in a list of three candidates - including local government heads and a senior state civil servant - all of whom have been interviewed by a special panel appointed by him. In the meantime, it is learnt that the MB will issue a press statement on the matter later today.

'Appointment goes against protocol'

In defending his former boss, Nik Nazmi said the announcement of the appointment without the MB being informed earlier is considered as "going against protocol". "Is it right that the MB, the head of the government in which Khusrin will work as the top state civil servant, gets to know about the appointment only through the media?

"The state constitution requires the state secretary to take his oath of office in front of the MB, indicating that a free and respectful relationship is supposed to exist between the MB and the state secretary to smoothen the government machinery," he said. With Khusrin ranked at Jusa C, Nik Nazmi added, he was under-qualified for the post of the top civil servant in the state - a position that comes with a Jusa A ranking.

source:malaysiakini

Although there is no written law requiring consultation with the Selangor menteri besar on the appointment of its new state secretary, convention dictates it should have been done. Lawyer Derek Fernandez said the consultative process with the menteri besar is standard practice, not the letter of the law, where it is a formality that should not be taken for granted.

“It is something which should be followed and not discarded in the best interests of Selangor. It would seem unfair if the menteri besar or his state exco members are not consulted,” said the Petaling Jaya-based lawyer.

Fernandez said in Selangor, the officer appointed as state secretary can come from federal level. However, it must work within the constitutional framework and constitutional law, which by convention dictates consultation among the Public Services Commission (PSC), the chief minister (the Selangor menteri besar) and the exco members of the state, he said.

“This is the problem when you have a two-party system, with different governments at the federal and state levels. So, despite there being a democratically-elected government, the government will not be able to effectively carry out its mandate without federal cooperation,” he said

“But the federal government has to respect the wishes of the Selangor people, who have elected their menteri besar and exco from Pakatan Rakyat. In a situation where there is a political divide between federal and state governments, the situation makes it difficult for the state to function,” he said.

“Therefore, it is most appropriate for the PSC to consult the menteri besar on the appointment. The civil servant will also have a problem in his allegiance on whether it would be to the state in which he works or the federal authority that pays his wages.”

The only problem here is that the Federal UMNO/BN government doesnt respect anyone....

Nagappan Gobalakrishnan, the PKR MP for Padang Serai, is in high dudgeon. Daily brings news of the latest darts from his blow gun aimed at party supremo Anwar Ibrahim and newly appointed vice-president N Surendran.

Former British prime minister Harold Wilson famously quipped that a week is a long time in politics. What more the month and a half since the time Gobala, as he is commonly called by friends, achieved an apotheosis of sorts in his relationship with Anwar.

That was Nov 11 when at the Pulai Springs Resort in Johor, Gobala told several score delegates from the state's PKR divisions, in the presence of Anwar and Azmin Ali, that though he supported Zaid Ibrahim for deputy president of the party, he drew the line on attacks by the latter on Anwar.

While candidly admitting he had supported Zaid in the contest for the party No 2 post, Gobala reaffirmed to the crowd his belief that Anwar's leadership was necessary to deliver the political reforms the country so badly needed. Hence he was not going to join Zaid who had just withdrawn from the race and was in party-quitting mode.

Someone with doubts about the wisdom of the PKR elections - as too radical a step in advance of the party's congealing on ideology and organisation - would have come away with qualms quieted, having watched Gobala handle the issue of intra-party rivalry and dissent. Here was a competitor - Gobala was then running a creditable fifth in the race for four vice-presidential slots - who knew how to keep rivalry in PKR within cohesion-forging limits.

The way Gobala spoke of his regard for Anwar gave the lie to the insult hurled at him by Sabah Umno MP, Lajim Ukin, who in Parliament last year called Gobala Anwar's toady, using language decidedly unparliamentary. Gobala is no one's flunkey, not yet.

More than sour grapes at being ignored

Gobala had expected to be named to one of four appointed veep positions in PKR following his failure to get elected to the four vice presidential slots that were up for direct election. Selangor state exco member Xavier Jeyakumar eventually out-polled Gobala in the vote and had expected to be named, but both he and Gobala were not selected for the appointed veep slot reserved for Indians. Instead human rights lawyer, N Surendran, was preferred. Dentist Xavier is rankled by the slight but does his grousing in private. Gobala, who is without tertiary qualifications, has gone public with his fury, at being ignored.

There are grounds to think that the recent PKR elections were marred by irregularities, but Gobala hasn't confined his misgivings to the poll results only. He now speaks all manner of ill against Anwar, targeting Surendren in turn. Gobala's bile is no longer a matter of sour grapes at being ignored for vice-president of the party; he now questions Anwar's sincerity in wanting to help poor Indian Malaysians get ahead in life.

In fact, Gobala sounds very much like S Nallakaruppan, like Gobala an ex-MIC youth leader, who had made common cause with Anwar before angrily departing PKR in 2007 after what he saw as Anwar's insincerity in not approving his bid for vice-resident in the party polls that year. Nalla, as he is commonly referred to, went on to claim that Anwar affected to care for the plight of Indian Malaysians but did not really bother.

At the time when Nalla made those criticisms of Anwar, Gobala rose in defence of Anwar, publicly recalling the times when Nalla told him of Anwar's telephone chats with Nalla on the eve of Budget day. Anwar, the finance minister then (1993-98), would inform Nalla of measures in the Budget reckoned to be helpful to Indian entrepreneurs. Gobala's reminiscences were in apparent refutation of Nalla's strictures that Anwar was only good at feigning concern for the economic conditions of Indian Malaysians.

Gobala's intelligence gathering

Now Gobala is parodying the very critic of Anwar he took exception to in 2007. The end of that year turned out to be pretty good for Gobala's relationship with Anwar. It was he who apprised Anwar of Hindraf's penetration of 18 major temples in Peninsula Malaysia that led to the informal movement's success at organising the massive demonstration of Nov 25, 2007. Based on Gobala's intelligence gathering, Anwar was able to leverage on the protest to gain for the opposition coalition he led the advantage at the general election of the following March.

The upshot: a hitherto invincible BN was denied their two-thirds parliamentary majority in addition to conceding four states to the opposition which maintained control of Kelantan.It was a political tour de force and Gobala played a crucial hand in it. Now that's all receding into insignificance as Gobala abandons the quiet discretion of his crucial bit-playing roles in PKR to join the ever enlarging caravan of one-time admirers of Anwar who have turned into detractors.- Terence Netto.

With an opinion poll showing the majority of Malaysians believe that the country is headed in the right direction under the Barisan Nasional (BN) government, the public are prompted to asked, "Will Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak call for a snap election?" Political analysts believe so but said the 13th general election will most likely be held in the second half of next year, reckoning that the BN has to concentrate its firepower in the Sarawak state election in the first half, Oriental Daily News reported today.

Political analyst Datuk Cheah See Kian opined that the next general election will definitely be held in 2011 but not in the first half of the year. He said Sarawak’s current legislative assembly ends in July next year, and if the BN state government does not hold the election in March or April, it will only be asking for trouble should the political scenario take a turn for worse for the ruling coalition in the last two months. He said it is most likely that the Sarawak state polls would be held in March and the general election in September or November.

Cheah pointed out that the BN does not have to hold the Sarawak and general elections simultaneously as the state polls can serve as a litmus test for the next general election. It would be a shot in the arm for BN if it obtains a thumping victory in the state polls, which will be proof that the coalition is still rock solid in East Malaysia. "Should the outcome be unfavourable to the BN, it can make use of its advantage as the ruling coalition to make adjustments, and to pick the date (for general election) only when conditions are favourable."

According to the latest opinion poll released by the Merdeka Centre for Opinion Research on Friday, the public believe that with Najib at the helm, Malaysia is on the right track despite a slight drop in his approval rating to 69% (from 72% in May) attributed to public reactions towards reductions in government subsidies for items such as fuel and sugar. Cheah told the daily that Najib took over the baton of premiership from his predecessor in April last year when BN and Umno were at an ebb in morale.

He said when all quarters were taking the wait-and-see stand, Najib rolled out a series of bold plans to transform the government and to turn Malaysia into a high-income nation by 2020, boosting the BN’s morale and raising the people’s expectations. "Whether these bold plans succeed or not is left to be seen, at least the people have something to look forward to, and the BN government cannot allow this expectations to fade before holding the general election. "As such, 2011 will be an election year, there is no need for BN to drag until the year after to hold the general election," said Cheah.

Merdeka Centre research manager Tan Seng Keat concurred with Cheah on the possible dates for Sarawak polls and the general election. He said as the people of Sarawak will be busy in preparing for the harvest season in May, March or April would be the ideal time for the state election to be held. He also said there is a great chance that the general election would be held in the second half of 2011. It is learnt that there are differences in opinion within the BN as to when the general election should be called. There are also two schools of thought within Umno itself, with one believing that the elections should be held as soon as possible when the Pakatan Rakyat is still plagued by internal conflicts, and the other -- a group of veterans -- feeling that the time is not yet ripe as the BN is not fully prepared.

Nevertheless, Tan predicts that the coming general election would see the fiercest battles in the Malaysian history with a lot of unknown variables, including the emergence of a third force, which can put a spanner in the works.-Kong See Hoh

25 December 2010

24 December 2010

A survey by independent pollster Merdeka Centre has revealed that almost two-thirds of Malaysians are against the federal government's plans to build the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka tower. The survey involving 1,005 respondents from Peninsular Malaysia saw 65 percent of them disagreeing with the plan, while only 25 percent of the respondents were in favour. Ethnic Chinese respondents constituted the highest among those who disagreed - at 75 percent. This was followed by Malays (60 percent) and Indians (58 percent).

The 100-story tower, which will eclipse the iconic 88-storey Petronas Twin Towers, was announced in Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak's budget speech in October. This project, reportedly costing RM5 billion, was swiftly met with criticism from the public and the opposition, arguing that the government had misplaced its priorities.

Many critics have suggested that the money would be better spent on improving public transportation, welfare or infrastructure. Even former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad warned that it would add to the city's property glut.

Facebook protest

Close to 280,000 people have signed a Facebook petition against the new skyscraper, saying that taxpayers' money would be better spent on education, healthcare and public transport. Najib has defended the project, saying it would proceed if studies showed that it was commercially viable, adding that it would be funded by government-owned fund manager Permodalan Nasional Bhd, rather than through public coffers.

"People feel there are more urgent things that the government should look into such as tackling the inflation, rising fuel prices and improving public transport," Merdeka Centre research manager Tan Seng Keat told AFP.

"People feel there is potential for wastage and corruption. They fear this is going to be another white elephant," he said, adding that if the government continues the project it will become an election issue among urban voters. Some political pundits expect Najib to seize on disarray within the opposition and his improved standing among voters to call snap elections early next year.Samy's exit good for MIC

The survey had also found the majority of respondents agreed that S Samy Vellu's decision to step down as MIC president would help the party regain trust from the Indian community. A total of 53 percent of respondents agreed with the move while 19 percent disagreed, with the rest being unsure. Interestingly, the highest number of disagreements were recorded from the ethnic Indian respondents, at 29 percent, but 57 percent agreed. Most ethnic Malay respondents (60 percent) agreed that Samy Vellu's exit was a good thing for MIC and only 19 percent disagreed.

Meanwhile, the majority of the Chinese are indifferent with 45 precent said they either "don't know" or did not give any response. Nevertheless, 39 percent favoured Samy Vellu's resgination, while 16 disagreed. Samy Vellu helmed the MIC for 32 years and finally stepped down on Dec 6, paving way for his deputy G Palanivel to take over.

PKR polls damage not too serious

Meanwhile, the survey also found that the public opinion on PKR may not have been badly affected by the flood of bad press on its fractious internal elections as initially thought. Asked if news reports about the polls were exaggerated, or accurately reflected the events, about a third (34 percent) believed that the reports were exaggerated.

This was matched by similar numbers who believed that the news reports were accurate. About 32 percent of the respondents were unsure. Interestingly, nearly half of the ethnic Indian respondents said that reports were exaggerated while nearly half of the ethnic Chinese respondents answered “don't know” or “not sure”. For the Malay respondents, 37 percent said the news reports were accurate while 36 percent said the reports were exaggerated.

23 December 2010

Pakatan Rakyat has defended its proposal to provide a RM500 special monthly allowance for those in the education service in an effort to reform the education sector. In a statement today, PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim said the formula to achieve this was by simply doing away with the BN administration's excesses.

"For example, the cost for the prime minister's international trips so far (RM8.7 million) could have paid for the special allowance for 1,450 teachers.

"Payments of RM77 million made to Apco Worldwide for 2009 can pay for the special allowance for 12,800 teaching personnel, equivalent to the total workforce entrusted to train our teachers.

"The recently disclosed cost of setting up and running Pemandu, involving a sum of RM131 million (including RM66 million paid to consultants) could have paid for the entire personnel managing our education service in the Education Ministry," Anwar said.

Other examples cited by Anwar included RM19 billion in gas subsidies for "crony companies", bailouts and leakages caused by corruption and dodgy procurement practices.

"Therefore, it is not about affordability. It is about political will and Umno and BN's (lack of) priority to restore the quality of education in the country," he said.

Anwar was responding to Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin's claim that Pakatan's proposal would bankrupt the country.

'We know our numbers'

He said that Pakatan had carefully studied the financial impact of its proposal and took note that there are currently 537,211 positions in the education services. This includes personnel in the ministry (24,153), education policy development (4,059), teachers and school operations level staff (493,399) and teacher training staff (10,610). The exercise to provide the RM500 special monthly allowance would then cost RM3.2 billion per annum.

"This amount is relatively small when compared with the excesses of Umno and BN in managing taxpayers' money," he said.

Anwar argued that Umno and BN had never treated education as a priority, pointing to the lack of concrete proposals to improve the education sector over the past decade.

"Pakatan's special allowance proposal is the first step towards promoting the teaching profession as a career of choice, at par with other professions such as doctors, engineers and accountants," he said.

'RM3.2b a good investment'

Anwar also chided Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak for dragging his feet in the establishment of the special consultative body to resolve issues plaguing the teaching profession. He said this would not have come to fruition had Pakatan not made consistent pledges to reform the education sector.

"A competent government would not have managed the nation's education service in this manner. The responsibility to look after the welfare of the teachers is an inherent function of a government. "Thus, it should not wait for a cue from its political opponent before it decides to act for the betterment of the teachers," he said.

However, Anwar added, Pakatan was steadfast in its belief that the welfare of teachers was still central to efforts to improve the quality of education. "Therefore, the RM3.2 billion special allowance proposed will be a good investment for the country's future."

Pakatan's special allowance proposal were among a slew of promises for reforms that can be implemented within the first 100 days after capturing Putrajaya. The pledges were announced during the second Pakatan convention in Penang on Sunday.

22 December 2010

The recent First Ladies Summit came with a price tag of close to RM4.5 million at the government's expense.The brainchild of the prime minister's wife, Rosmah Mansor, the inaugural summit hosted 15 wives of heads of state from around the world - although mainly from African countries - in Kuala Lumpur in October.

In a written reply to the Dewan Negara today, Women, Family and Community Development Minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil revealed that the total expenditure for the three-day summit came up to RM4,498,949.99.

In response, PKR senator Syed Husin Ali baulked at the figures, claiming that Rosmah is not even the nation's rightful First Lady.

“Why is the First Ladies Summit organised by our prime minister's wife when, in our country, the First Lady is the Permaisuri Agong?

“This brings into question the basis of giving RM4.5 million to the PM's wife to organise this meet while no role was given to the Permaisuri Agong,” he told a press conference at the Parliament lobby this morning. The summit, themed 'A Child Today, A Leader Tomorrow', was aimed at highlighting the need to nurture children who will be future leaders.

'Encroachment by Permata'

During the press conference, Senator Mumtaz Md Nawi from PAS questioned the involvement of the Permata Negara programme - another of Rosmah's initiatives - with different government agencies. “We appreciate the concern of anyone in looking after the welfare of children.

"But in a parliamentary democracy, there have to be boundaries in the programmes involving the Women, Family and Community Development, Education, Higher Education, Youth and Sports Ministries and the Prime Minister's Department," said Mumtaz.

“This is especially since there has been an announcement that the Permata Negara programme would involve teenagers. “To what end is the power of the Prime Minister's Department or the prime minister's wife being used in outlining a national policy?”

Rosmah had said in June that the Education Ministry would be taking over the programme from 2012 when two relevant laws are amended. Permata - which started out as an early childhood learning programme - has also been allocated RM111 million in the 2011 Budget.

'Najib spent half his time overseas'

Meanwhile, Syed Husin noted that premier Najib Abdul Razak has spent more than half of his time in power overseas. Revealing the written reply to him by Minister in Prime Minister's Department Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, Syed Husin said that Najib had spent RM8,724,895.91 on his 42 trips abroad over the span of one-and-a-half years.

In the 588 days between April 3, 2009 and Nov 19 this year, Najib had also spent 274 days abroad. “Why is he spending so much time overseas when there are a lot of problems in the country, especially at the expense of the taxpayers?" asked Syed Husin.

“I want to know what are the benefit and returns of spending so much time and money on travelling so often.”

21 December 2010

Land on which the Kampung Melayu Pekan Rawang surau is located was sold to private hands by the Selangor government in 2002, then controlled by BN.

The surau is now slated for demolition, triggering protests.

Selangor MenteriBesar Khalid Ibrahim's political secretary Faekah Husin (left) said the plot was held by SAP Holdings Sdn Bhd, then held by state investment arm Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Bhd (KDEB).

In 2002, KDEB released its shares in SAP Holdings Bhd to private ownership. The same year, the state government approved a joint-venture project on the land between SAP Holdings and another company Mahamus Sdn Bhd.

In a statement, Faekah said the facts run contrary to claims by Umno leaders who are championing the residents' cause to campaign for the surau to be preserved.

She singled out Zainal Abidin Sakom(right) as among the Umno leaders involved.

“Zainal Abidin has no moral or legal right to accuse the current state government for this mess because he was part of the state administration which not only release rights in SAP Holdings but also approved the project,” she said.

Commenting on demonstrations against the state government by Kampung Melayu Pekan Rawang residents, Faekah said they are targeting the wrong party.

“The facts clearly show who had forsaken the rights of the people. Instead of demonstrating against the state, it may be more appropriate for the demonstrators to take their complaint to the offices of Umno and MCA,” she said.

However, she gave the assurance that the state government will work with the Selangor Islamic Affairs Department to find a solution to ensure that Muslims in the village can continue their religious activities.

A bus carrying Thai tourists crashed and overturned today as it came down from Cameron Highlands, killing 27 people and injuring 10 in what is believed to be the worst road accident in Malaysian history.

Twenty-two of them died on the spot in the accident at Km15 of the Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai Road after the double-decker tour bus crashed onto the divider, went across to the opposite lane and overturned in a ditch, said Perak Deputy Chief Police Officer Datuk Zakaria Yusof.

Four people died as they were being rushed to hospital and one person died at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital here, he told reporters at the scene. Three of those killed were Malaysians, he said, adding that one of them was the bus driver Omar Shahidan, 48, another a tour guide of Siamese descent Soontorn a/l Kian, 38, and the third a yet-to-be-identified co-driver. Fifteen of the dead were women.

Zakaria said the bus was heading from Cameron Highlands to Kuala Lumpur because it was believed that the tourists were to have boarded a flight from the Malaysian capital to Bangkok. Preliminary investigation indicated that the driver lost control of the vehicle and it crashed onto the road divider, went across to the opposite lane and overturned into a ditch.

He said the police and Fire & Rescue Department were summoned at about noon and they deployed 100 personnel in the rescue operation. Zakaria said there were 37 people in the bus bearing registration number AFX 2266 belonging to San Express Holiday registered in Perak and operating out of Changloon, Kedah.

San Express Holiday managing director Sor Eng Hock, who is in Bangkok on business, said when contacted: "I am very sad ... I am shocked." He said he would have to come back to the country to find out what exactly happened. The bus company was registered in 2007 and its six buses had never been involved in major accidents, he said.Replying to a question, Sor said he would have to discuss some form of compensation for the victims.

The Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai Road, which has many curves and gradients, was opened to traffic in 2003. It is an alternative road to the highlands, the original one leading from Tapah. The new road is usually used by motorists heading to Gua Musang through Lojing in Kelantan.

Today's accident is believed to be the worst in Malaysian history. The previous major road accident occurred on Aug 13, 2007, when 20 people were killed and nine injured in a bus accident at Km229 of the North-South Expressway in Bukit Gantang near Taiping, also in Perak.

source:Bernama

Malaysian Research Institute on Road Safety (Miros) has been given the responsibility to identify the cause of the accident at Km15 Cameron Highlands-Simpang Pulai Road today, which was the worst bus tragedy in the country's history.

20 December 2010

With all that he has had go through in recent months—not to speak of recent years—one would have thought that Anwar Ibrahim would be a goner by now.

But the charismatic politician and orator keeps bouncing back, to the chagrin of his enemies, who were probably hoping that he would not survive the turmoil of the PKR national elections, the setbacks he has suffered in his sodomy trial (including the apparent support of Singapore leader Lee Kwan Yew for the indictment) and his suspension from Parliament.

At two recent ceramahs in Negeri Sembilan and Malacca, his audiences received him as enthusiastically as they always have. During the PKR elections, which ended last month, both Zaid Ibrahim and S Jenapala attacked him relentlessly over alleged discrepancies in the conduct of the polls. They even seemed to have widespread support from within the party. And there were co-stars who questioned the legitimacy of his position as PKR’s Ketua Umum.

Many opposition supporters and even leaders from PAS and DAP feared that the bad press Anwar was getting would affect Pakatan Rakyat’s performance in the next general election. Even top PKR leaders felt they had a tough time explaining Anwar’s side of the story to the PKR grassroots, what with the mainstream media maximally exploiting the apparent disarray in the party.

According to at least one Malay daily, Anwar had lost the confidence of a substantial section of the PKR membership. These detractors should have been in Seremban last Thursday night, where Anwar delivered his first public address since his suspension from Parliament. They would have seen proof that he still commands incredibly strong support and respect from the grassroots.

Roars of approval

Pundits who observed the size of the crowd and its reaction to the speech maintained that no other Malaysian politician had the ability to cast such a spell on such a racially mixed audience.

About 5,000 people—Malays, Chinese and Indians—stood shoulder to shoulder on a small field in the Seremban suburb of Kampung Ismail. The number was remarkable, considering the last-minute confirmation of the event, the lack of publicity for it and the heavy downpour that preceded it and turned the field muddy and sticky. The reception surprised even the Negeri Sembilan PKR officials who organised the talk.

The crowd not only listened, but roared in approval or anger at the appropriate moments in Anwar’s speech. He spoke for about 90 minutes, mostly on the sodomy allegations and the suspension from Parliament of himself as MP for Permatang Pauh, Karpal Singh (DAP-Bukit Gelugor), Azmin Ali (PKR-Subang) and R Sivarasa (PKR-Subang.)

Referring to the WikiLeaks report that quoted Singapore’s Lee as saying he “knowingly walked” into a sodomy trap and blasting former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad for his subsequent comments, Anwar said:

"I challenge Kuan Yew and Mahathir to give evidence in court.”

The same WikiLeaks report also made damaging statements about Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak. Anwar challenged Najib to defend himself, as he was doing in court and in public forums.

"WikiLeaks also reported that Singapore intelligence believed that Najib is having a tough time amid allegations of his involvement in the Altantuya murder,” he said. "But he has said that is a small issue and ‘let focus on development.’ "People are accusing you of involvement in murder. How can you say that is a small issue?”

Order to capture NS

Anwar was supposed to speak only for an hour and should have left the stage at 10pm, as he was expected at another ceramah at Ayer Molek, Malacca. But encouraged by the crowd, he spoke on, ignoring two time reminders that a state PKR leader put on the rostrum.

He ended the speech at 10.30pm, after reminding Pakatan leaders and supporters to capture Negeri Sembilan in the next general election. The opposition needs only four more seats to form a government in the state.

Anwar arrived at Ayer Molek at 11.30pm, where only a slightly smaller audience had been waiting for hours to hear him. Again, he wowed the crowd.

The Pakatan Rakyat convention in Penang sent an unmistakable and chilling signal to arch rivals - Prime Minister Najib Razak and the Umno-BN coalition. Despite a roller coaster journey since sweeping to power in the 2008 general election, Pakatan has not been diminished by the enmity and malice unleashed by its political opponents, but has been able to mature and grow stronger in the process.

"You name it, whatever problems, whatever hardship or stone or rock that the Umno-BN could find, they have thrown it at us. But we are committed to an agenda of change and that needs the removal of the current federal government," Opposition Leader and Pakatan de-facto head Anwar Ibrahim told Malaysia Chronicle at the sidelines of the congress.

Pakatan delegates and other members of the public who wanted to meet their 'reformasi' heroes were spoiled for choice. DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng, who is also Penang Chief Minister, played host to the 2,000-strong crowd at the convention.

Racial policies rejected, preliminary 10-point manifesto unveiled

In a rousing opening address, Guan Eng warned Prime Minister Najib Razak's Umno party not to 'hijack' the federal constitution and misinterpret the controversial Article 153 to divide the ethnic groups in the country.

"Somehow Umno always fails to mention that Article 153 also states that the legitimate interests of other communities must also be protected,” Guan Eng said.

“Umno will always try to play up the relationship between PAS and DAP. They want to politicise this. They will use the 3Rs — Race, religion and ‘Raja’ (the Rulers) to try and drive a wedge between us."

Guan Eng also unveiled a ten-point document to be signed by all the top Pakatan leaders and which is set to become the coalition's preliminary manifesto in the coming general election. The resolutions outline in detail the changes Pakatan will introduce within the first 100 days of its taking over Putrajaya if it wins the next general election expected to be held early next year.

The resolutions are:

1. A restructure of institutions including the Elections Commission (EC), the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Attorney-General’s Chambers and the Royal Malaysian Police. During a debate on the policy framework, DAP’s Anthony Loke said PR bring the MACC under the purview of Parliament.

2. A repeal of the Internal Security Act (ISA)

3. Instruct Khazanah Berhad, Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and other government bodies to take over highway assets from the concessionaires in order to abolish the toll system.

4. A restructure of the country’s subsidies, to lessen subsidies given to the private sector (such as the RM19 billion in gas subsidies given to independent power producers) and transferring these to subsidies for the man on the street.

5. Acknowledging the role and sacrifices of civil servants by studying the current pay schemes and increasing the incentives for teachers by RM500 a month

6. Transferring private water concessions to the government

7. Offering free wireless Internet access to those in urban and semi-urban areas

8. Cancelling Felda Plantations and opening up its farms to second- and third generation Felda settlers.

9. Increasing oil royalty payments to Sabah, Sarawak, Terengganu and Kelantan to 20 per cent from 5 per cent currently.

10. Formation of a Royal Commission to solve the problem of illegal immigrants and citizenship issues in Sabah and Sarawak.

18 December 2010

The PKR's new leadership line-up announced today is a mixed bag of new and old faces. But contrary to initial speculation, the list does not appear to be heavily inclined towards deputy president Azmin Ali's team.

The biggest surprise, however, is the appointment of human rights lawyer N Surendran, 44, to the vice-president's post. He did not offer himself as a candidate in the recent party polls.

Former health minister and MCA leader Chua Jui Meng was also appointed vice-president, while the Sabah and Sarawak quota went to Sarawak chief Baru Bian. Defeated candidates also saw themselves appointed to leadership positions with Youth chief candidate Badrul Hisham Shaharin (more popularly known as Chegubard) given the deputy secretary-general mantle. Defeated deputy presidency candidate Mustaffa Kamil Ayub is now a member of the powerful political bureau while heading the training bureau.

Reshuffle among party heavyweights

While most of the appointments saw young faces and Anwar-loyalists such as Rafizi Ramli taking the strategic director's post and Pantai Jerejak assemblyperson Sim Tze Tsin becoming the deputy information director, there was also a reshuffle among the party heavyweights.

Lawyer Latheefa Koya now heads the newly-set up legal bureau while Dr Mohd Nor Manuty will be replacing her as information chief. Azmin Ali will also be the new elections director, in place of vice-president Fuziah Salleh.

When announcing the line-up at a press conference in PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya this afternoon, party president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said that those appointed have been notified and all have accepted.

"So this issue of rejecting any position does not arise at all since everyone has accepted their posts," she said.

17 December 2010

Nazri had also called the opposition bench “stupid” and “crazy” with “cow dung in their heads” for threatening to sue Pandikar, and described Karpal as a “third-class lawyer”. To that, Karpal said: “Nazri can call me a third-class lawyer. I may be third-class but he has no class.

Karpal Singh said today Pakatan Rakyat will take Dewan Rakyat speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia to court over the suspension of four opposition MPs from Parliament. Saying that the coalition will file its suit “as soon as possible”, he also rubbished Minister in the Prime Minister's Department and de facto law minister Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz's remarks that decisions of the Dewan Rakyat cannot be challenged in court.

“But in the case of (Puchong MP) Gobind Singh Deo, we took the speaker to court and we won,” said Karpal, referring to Gobind's six-month suspension without pay, where the court ruled that the withholding of an MP's salary was unconstitutional.

“The (Perak constitutional crisis) showed that even the state assembly proceedings can be questioned. “Action against the speaker will be filed soon and I am surprised that Nazri said it cannot be challenged when there is already a precedence,” he added as the Pakatan MPs present broke out in laughter.

“This matter will go to court and we are serious about it,” he said at a press conference called by Pakatan at the PKR headquarters in Petaling Jaya this morning.

disclaimer

1. This is a personal weblog. The opinions expressed here represent my own and is not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, institution, political organization, or individual.

2. Any view or opinion represented in the blog comments are personal and is accredited to the respective commentor / visitor to this blog.

3. This blogger reserves the right to moderate comment suitability in support of respecting racial, religious and political sensitivities, and in order to protect the rights of each commentor where available.